1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a terminal positioning member and a voltage control device (as a regulator) for vehicle alternator having the positioning member capable of controlling an output voltage from a vehicle alternating current (AC) generator, in particular, relates to a positioning member for positioning terminals applicable to various vehicle devices such as a voltage control device for vehicle as a regulator.
2. Description of the Related Art
A vehicle alternator is equipped with a voltage control device, namely, a regulator for controlling the output voltage from the vehicle alternator. The regulator includes electric components therein such as mold integral circuits (ICs) that are sealed in a regulator protective case or a protective pack. In particular, electric terminals are positioned and then sealed in the regulator protective case by performing insert molding. A part of each electric terminal is protruded to the outside of the regulator protective case and is exposed to the outside atmosphere.
On performing the insert molding for sealing the electric terminals, it is necessary to fix the position of each electric terminal accurately at a specified position in the regulator protective case by using a positioning pin. The positioning pin is a positioning member.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a concrete example of the configuration of a typical conventional regulator (as the voltage control device) and FIG. 8 is a sectional diagram of the regulator along the line VII-VII in the configuration shown in FIG. 7.
As shown in those FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the terminals 110 are formed by the insert molding in the regulator protective case 100. Because the insert molding for the electric terminals 110 is performed while the positioning pin (not shown) pushes a part of each electric terminal 110 through a positioning hole 120 that is also a positioning member. After the completion of the insert molding process, the positioning pin (not shown) is removed from the regulator protective case 100. As a result, the hole 120 as the positioning member is remained in the cured regulator protective case 100 after the completion of the insert molding process and the positioning pin has already been removed from the regulator protective case 100. Further, the part of each electric terminal 110 is exposed to the outside atmosphere through the bottom of the hole 120. If rainwater or washing water invades into the hole 120, the electric terminals 110 are corroded by the water because a current flows between the water at the bottom of the hole 120, the electric terminal 110, and other electric components made of metal, each of those is a different voltage potential from the voltage potential of the electric terminals 110. Finally, the electric terminals are broken by corrosion. Thus, the presence of the hole 120 (as the positioning member) in the regulator protective case 100 is liable to electrolytic corrosion.
In order to prevent or avoid the occurrence of electrolytic corrosion by the invasion of the water into the hole 120, there are well known manners such as the inserting mold method in which the hole 120, through which a part of the electric terminal 110 is exposed to the outside atmosphere, is covered with insulation member.
The Japanese patent laid open publication No. JP-2000-61947 has disclosed such a conventional manner of positioning the electric terminals in a mold using insulating member while contacting the insulating member to the mold so as not to expose the electric terminal to the outside atmosphere, and, finally filling melted molding resin into the mold. This conventional method provides the regulator in which the electric terminals and the insulating member are inserted together in the regulator protective case.
However, because such a conventional method described above needs the additional process of setting the insulating member into the mold during the manufacturing process of the regulator, the manufacturing productivity thereby drops by the additional manufacturing step, and the manufacturing cost increases by adding the insulating member.